Prentiss County Northeast hosts band championship.
Tippah County Hospital opens Senior Care Unit.
Tishomingo County Fair offers fun for the entire family.
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Wednesday Sept. 30,
2015
75 cents
Daily Corinthian Vol. 119, No. 234
Not as warm Today
Tonight
72
59
50% chance of rain
• Corinth, Mississippi • 24 pages • Two sections
Police catch crime spree suspect BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
An Alabama man is in custody in Corinth after what police describe as a crime spree that ended with a pursuit in Corinth. Daniel Griswold, 48, of Mountain Gap Road, Huntsville, Ala., was arrested early Monday and charged with two counts of burglary of a
commercial building. Bond was set at $70,000. Police Chief Ralph Dance said the spree extended from Red Bay, Ala., to Iuka and then Corinth, where he broke into two restaurant buildings — the now-closed Mi Ranchito at 1001 Highway 72 West and another undisclosed location. Someone spotted the man and gave a
description of his vehicle to Corinth police, who got in pursuit until the man stopped and surrendered on Linden Street near Galyean Road at about 3 a.m. He was in possession of $2,000 cash and stolen items. Dance said Griswold threw some of the merchandise out of the vehicle as he fled police. Griswold is accused of taking lap-
top computers and other items in Red Bay and cash and other items at four Tishomingo County businesses. Those law enforcement agencies have interviewed and charged Griswold, who was on probation and will be held for Alabama. “The night shift officers did a great job with a quick response to catch this supsect,” said Dance.
Griswold
Troubled cemetery has owner 2 hurt in wreck; BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
Two Oxford men are taking over the troubled Forrest Memorial Park Cemetery property. The Secretary of State’s Office finalized the property closing on Tuesday, ending the property’s four years spent in receivership after an investigation of the misuse of prepaid burial funds. Thomas D. Fowlkes of Oxford was the high bidder at $128,750. With Glenn Coleman, he has formed Forrest Memorial Park, LLC, which was deeded the cemetery by the receivership on Tuesday.
It had previously been in the hands of lienholder SouthBank. The auction for the property, encompassing 12.5 acres on Highway 45 south of Corinth, attracted three bids. The others were Allen Keith Knight of Oxford, $53,750, and Jeff Rencher of Corinth, $2,510. In a press release, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann welcomed the return of the cemetery to private ownership. “We are pleased a Mississippi company with strong ties to North Mississippi is taking ownership of the property,” he said. “We hope this sale will
bring closure to the families who have loved ones buried at Forrest Memorial Park.” An investigation by the Secretary of State’s Office in 2011 found the cemetery’s pre-need trust accounts were depleted by $473,521 by former owner Wayne Hight, who pleaded guilty in 2013 to misappropriating pre-need burial funds at Forrest Memorial Park and Booneville’s Oaklawn Memorial Park. He served a year in custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The Booneville cemetery was previously sold to Jeff Rencher.
driver faces DUI Staff Report
KOSSUTH — Two individuals are listed in stable condition at Regional One Medical Center (The Med) following a Sunday night wreck. A male and female were airlifted from Kossuth High School when the dirk bike they were riding was involved in
Crash kills 1, hurts 1 BY BRANT SAPPINGTON bsappington@dailycorinthian.com
A crash on new Highway 30 has left one Booneville woman dead and another critically injured. Courtney S. Owens, 22, of Booneville was pronounced dead on the scene of the collision at the intersection of County Road 5031 and Missis-
Staff photo by Kimberly Shelton
Cody Daniel, Keith Sikora, Lee Ann Story-Sikora and Gina Wallace collaborate on upcoming projects.
a crash with a pickup around 8:43 p.m. Sunday. The driver of the truck is in custody at the Alcorn County Jail and faces a DUI charge pending further investigation. The accident took place on County Road 600. County Road 600 is about four miles from Highway 2.
sippi Highway 30 just south of Booneville Monday. Owens was the passenger in a 1988 Chevrolet pickup truck driven by Deanna C. Leslie, 25, of Booneville. Mississippi Highway Patrol Troop F spokesperson M/Sgt. Ray Hall said Leslie was northbound on CR Please see CRASH | 6A
Animal shelter seeks cold weather items BY ZACK STEEN zsteen@dailycorinthian.com
themselves can do.” Echoing her sentiments, CT-A board member and actor Dan Marsh expressed his appreciation for the influence of poetry upon his children. “My kids love the project,” said Dan. “My son Max and I have participated in several events and have also done videos to educate others about Crossroads Poetry Project.” An eighth grader at Corinth Middle School, Max Marsh shared his enthusiasm for the videos. “We talk about what the project does, explain the his-
With the cold of winter right around the corner, the fourlegged critters at the CorinthAlcorn Animal Shelter are in need of items to help them stay warm. Volunteer Director Charlotte Doehner said the shelter is in need of cold-weather items, including dog houses, kerosene, blankets, throws and old newspapers. The shelter hopes to collect some of those much needed items at Saturday’s Green Market at the Crossroads Museum. The market will host its annual Pet Costume Contest where owners are encouraged to dress up their pets for a chance to win some pet friendly prizes. Scheduled to start at 1 p.m. on Saturday in front of the muse-
Please see POETRY | 6A
Please see SHELTER | 6A
Poetry Project shares its impact BY KIMBERLY SHELTON kshelton@dailycorinthian.com
As they contemplate the activities of their 8th season, members, organizers and supporters of the Crossroads Poetry Project gathered at the Corinth Library to discuss the projects’ impact on themselves, others and the community as a whole. “The poetry project has visited my class on numerous occasions,” said Rhonda Dickerson, a teacher’s assistant at Glendale Elementary School. “It’s been a wonderful thing for the children and one of the biggest highlights of my workshops. I love watching their
faces light up as they listen to the readings of ‘Poetry Man’ Autry Davis.” Now in her 25th year as a Kindergarten assistant, Dickerson looks forward to Davis’ next visit in October. “Autry will make a special visit to our class to show artist Jaylene Whitehurt’s limited edition print and read the attached poem by Burnsville 5th-grader Emma Hicks,” said Dickerson. “Hearing the poetry has been beneficial to my students. They come in sleeping and leave feeling excited about writing. It helps them to build confidence, but also to realize that it is something they
Staff photo by Zack Steen
A local pet owner and his dog were dressed as Tennessee Vols fans at last year’s Pet Costume Contest at the Green Market at the Crossroads Museum. Entry into Saturday’s 1 p.m. contest is a donation to the Corinth-Alcorn Animal Shelter.
25 years ago
10 years ago
Downtown Corinth Association Manager Debbie Stauffer seeks support from county supervisors. Stauffer notes the downtown area supports 600 jobs, the equivalent of a large industry.
Kossuth High School celebrates its annual homecoming at Larry B. Mitchell Stadium. Sarah Beth Rakestraw is crowned queen during the annual celebration.
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